Ten years ago, when Antonio McDyess would score 21 points while snagging 16 rebounds in 34 minutes, he was simply doing what was expected of him as one of his teams leading players. Last night, when he led the Detroit Pistons to a Game 4, 94-75 victory, he provided a much needed but unexpected lift for his team.

After three consecutive slow first quarter starts, the Pistons came out with increased intensity on both the offensive and defensive ends. No player typified this renewed commitment more than McDyess. In that first quarter alone, he continuously hit 18 to 22 foot jumpers, he grabbed five rebounds, and he hustled after every loose ball within his reach. His play clearly set the tone for the remainder of the game, and the Pistons led wire to wire. Not bad for a player who was considered to be the fifth option in the starting rotation.

Initially, not much was expected from McDyess when the Pistons signed him as an unrestricted free agent in July of 2004. He had suffered a serious knee injury early in the 2001-2002 season while playing for the Denver Nuggets and it robbed him of the explosiveness that had previously defined his game. He had fought through two plus seasons of rehab, to average 8 points and 6 rebounds for the New York Knicks in 18 appearances during the 2003-2004 season. Still, these were modest numbers for a player who had averaged 20 points and 12 rebounds in his last full NBA season.

The Pistons themselves had just won their first NBA title in 14 years, and their starting rotation of Chauncey Billups, Richard Hamilton, Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace and Tayshaun Prince was set in stone. They simply signed McDyess to provide some depth to what was a thin frontcourt. At that time, the only other frontcourt players with size on the roster were an unproven Darko Milicic, and a 36-year-old Elden Campbell.

McDyess averaged 9 points and 6 rebounds in 77 appearances during that initial year, but he consistently gave the Pistons a boost off the bench. That year, McDyess and the Pistons fell short of a title, when they fell to the San Antonio Spurs in seven hard fought games. He could no longer jump over his defenders for a follow up dunk or rebound, but he had successfully modified his game to be a solid rebounder and post player who could hit the open mid-range jump shot if left open. Over the next three seasons, McDyess continued to play the role as the contributing role player; however, it almost came to an end after the 2006-2007 playoffs.

The Pistons had just come off a devastating playoff series loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. They had gone up two games to none, and then watched helplessly as the Lebron James and upstart rookie Daniel Gibson helped to defeat the Pistons four games in a row to advance to the NBA Finals. One of the lasting images of that series, was a distraught Antonio McDyess sitting on the bench in his uniform after Game 5, well after his teammates had left. He was so upset that his team had given up a career defining 48 point performance to James, that he when he eventually left the arena, he did so in full uniform, wondering if his window of opportunity to win a Championship had passed. He even openly questioned his own will and desire to continue playing by telling the media that it was over for him.

Yet at the start of the 2007-2008 season, Antonio McDyess was not only still with the team, but he was in the starting line-up on opening night and for 77 games after that. Not since his 2000-2001 season with the Denver Nuggets had he started that frequently, and he certainly delivered by averaging 8 points and 8 rebounds. He was the fifth option in the Detroit Pistons offense, and rarely were plays run for him, but never did he complain or sulk on the floor. McDyess simply showed up played hard on both ends of the floor, and got his baskets here and there. That was pretty much the status quo for McDyess until this Eastern Conference Final against the Celtics.

During this Celtics series, despite the fact that he is playing against Kendrick Perkins who is 10 years his junior, and despite playing with a broken nose that requires him to sometimes wear a “Richard Hamilton” mask, McDyess is averaging 16 points and 10 rebounds. Whereas before, McDyess was the fifth option hoping to get the ball, Billups and the other Pistons’ starters, are now making it a point to find McDyess in the post. Once the ball is in his hands, McDyess is not disappointing at all, as been hitting his shots 56% of the time. It has gotten to the point where the Celtics, specifically Perkins, may have to devise and implement the “McDyess Rules” in order to slow him down. Nearly eight years after his last All-Star game appearance, McDyess is once again proving to be a dominant player.

At the end of the Game 4 victory, McDyess was asked why he was playing so hard, and his response was to say that at his age he only “has a limited amount of opportunities” with which to shine and he felt like he had to “leave it all out on the floor” every night.

McDyess has done that and then some during this series, and you get the feeling that he isn’t quite done yet.

Photo Credit: Icon Sports Media

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